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weather and sun, they are therefore covered with different kinds of matter, according to the uses of the different parts of the mast.
The head and heel parts of the masts are always covered with tar mixed into a consistence with lamp black, and this being frequently repeated, it forms at last a covering of the thickness of a crown, and sometimes a quarter of an inch; through which as the Sun cannot pierce, it is commonly without flaw or rent; but the middlemost part, upon which the sail slips up and down, is always rubbed with tallow, or grease, or hogs lard, to make it more slippery; and this being frequently scraped off, and anointed afresh, and in hot weather, or the summer time, it becomes extremely thin, being melted off, and frequently and in many places rubbed off by the slipping up and down of the sail and parrel, which exposes it so much, that the Sun sometimes rends it from end to end almost, and so deep as to reach the centre of the mast, and an inch wide. But as the yard, which extends the lowermost sail upon any of the masts, is commonly carried at the same height, the middlemost part of this mast is usually covered with rosin mixed with tallow or oil, and sometimes turpentine mixed with the same; and this being soft, cracks and melts with the Sun, and so leaves some places of the mast bare, and this will rend and split also like the top-mast and top-gallant-mast, that are covered with tallow or grease, but not quite so large rents.
We are now to observe, that no part of the top-gallant mast or top-mast, that was covered with the lamp black, were touched with the thunder, the
Vol. LIV.
